Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf Tuesday called on the country's new National Assembly to convene next Monday after two major parties, the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), agreed to form a coalition government last weekend.
The call came as two suicide attacks rocked the eastern Pakistan city of Lahore, killing at least 24, the latest in a string of similar attacks in recent months. The escalation of violence triggered growing concerns about Pakistan's security prospects and its potential impact on the power-sharing within the incoming coalition government.
Security needs to be addressed
Tuesday's twin blasts, which rocked a federal police headquarters and a private business in Lahore, were the first acts of terrorism since Nawaz Sharif, leader of the PML-N, and the party of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto announced the formation of a coalition government.
At least seven suicide attacks have taken place in the three weeks following the February 18 parliamentary elections in which the PPP secured 120 seats in the 342-seat National Assembly, or the lower house of parliament, followed by Sharif's party with 90 and the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League-Q 51.
Lahore, the country's cultural capital which had been spared the sort of raids seen in all other major cities in the past year, has suffered three attacks in two months.
The party of Sharif blamed a military operation ordered by Musharraf for destabilizing the regions bordering Afghanistan.
Musharraf also condemned Tuesday's bombing, saying they cannot deter the government's resolve to fight the scourge of terrorism with full force, Pakistan's official news agency reported.
